Jazz Book Recommendations

(11 posts)

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  1. bingefeller
    Member

    Hey guys,

    I'm really trying to get into jazz and I'm on the look out for some cool books with tablature in them as my reading normal notation is very poor.

    I currently have the Mel Bay Jazz Guitar Standards, which I find is a lot of fun. ( http://www.amazon.com/dp/0786666455/ref=rdr_ext_sb_ti_sims_1 )

    The good thing about this book is that it gives you tablature for chord melody, single note lines and a comping etude. Most of the chord melody stuff is beyond my level but the comping etudes are great.

    Can anyone recommend to me some books like this one? If it has a CD with it even better! Something that's at an intermediate, but challenging level would be good!

    Thanks.

    • Posted 1 year ago
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  2. Matt
    Member

    the real book. maybe ted greene's chord chemistry.
    and learn to read music. being confined to tab is not going to get you anywhere.

    • Posted 1 year ago
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  3. jorgemg1984
    Member

    Learn to read. The real book is fine for a start but its full of wrong changes. "Conecting chords with linear harmony" is the best book for easy II V lines. Transcribe something easy like Miles Davis solo on "Freddie Freeloader" (Kind Of Blue). And learn to read.

    • Posted 1 year ago
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  4. patfarlow
    Member

    jazz theory book by mark levine is worth owning

    • Posted 1 year ago
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  5. InWalked
    Member

    Any book without tablature is good. Melodic Rhythms for Guitar is a good place to start.

    • Posted 1 year ago
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  6. bingefeller
    Member

    I have heard lots about this Jazz Theory Book so I might have to look at that one:)

    • Posted 1 year ago
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  7. Matt
    Member

    i think mark levine's book (jazz theory) presents a lot of concepts in confusing ways...i got it to solidify my foundations and found that it really made what i knew more complex.
    that being said, it has a great list of recordings, tunes, and examples within.

    • Posted 1 year ago
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  8. Floatingbridge
    Member

    i'm surprised that in levine's book( the piano one , i believe- pastel pink and blue minimalist representation of piano and sky or something) that there isnt any mention of lenny tristano.anyways, there are plenty of tab books. i don't know them well, but i've seen them while looking for other stuff . they are generally newer publications from MI or warner or hal leonard... stuff like 15 wes montgomery solos , or 15 jazz standards arranged for solo chord melody guitar , 10 great charlie parker solos for guitar type things....generally yes book and cd( again with a shinier and up to date look on the cover ... as opposed to say , a bearded dude in the 70's holding some weird chord in his backyard infront of his collection of teles and stuff grinning his ass off . i understand that it is frustrating and feels crappy ( my reading sucks- but i know how and what it means and where i can do it and how to break things down ...so it's more about laziness and consistency in my case) and that just having a quick tangible way to satisfy getting to a place where you're making those sounds that aren't what you normally do and that you hear in people you dig. i totally get that.however as many are saying, please- parallel with that pursuit, learn to read. there are some great ideas that horns and piano are doing that are not going to be something that come from the ergonomic set up of the guitar ( so many guitarplayers do not do them) they are things that sit better in the hands of other instruments in a way that is more intuitive to their design. so you get different lines and chords. if you talk to horn players, they don't care about the 6th fret low e being the same as the 1st fret a; they just want to talk about Bb.

    • Posted 1 year ago
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  9. JorgeRubiales
    Member

    My advice is to learn to read the better you can while you're studying jazz. It can save your ass sometimes.

    Last week I sit in a jam which was organized to promote a new cultural center, There were some big names of the local scene, the director of the jazz festival, some local newspaper's photographer, etc.

    Well, the truth is that I was the worst player up there, but I managed to fake it thanks to my reading skills. I stood slightly behind a bass player who had the chart, and looked over his shoulder until I got a grip on the form. Then, as they sey, "let the melody be your guide" (or, alter the melody and add a couple of nice dissonances lol). And it worked.

    So my advice is to not underestimate the power of reading. The other stuff, you can find it in about every decent jaz book, or by yourself.

    • Posted 1 year ago
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  10. jorgemg1984
    Member

    Both Levine`s book are vastly overrated.. they are fine but not as good as people say and very incomplete on several issues (the "how to study scales" part on the Jazz Theory Book is a joke...)

    • Posted 1 year ago
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  11. bingefeller
    Member

    Hey guys,

    Thanks for all the comments. I got the Hal Leonard Jazz Bible Fakebook today and it's pretty good and has lots of songs in it.

    I am wondering, how do you come up with chord substitutions?

    • Posted 1 year ago
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